discoveries: the nature of the grand prairieriver bend forest preserve • sangamon river forest...

100 Discoveries: The Nature of the Grand Prairie

Champaign County Forest Preserve District

Final Report: December 27, 2012 P a g e | 1

Grant Agreement # 12‐004W Grantee: Champaign County Forest Preserve District P.O. Box 1040 Mahomet, IL 61853 (217) 586‐3360 Contact: Mary Ellen Wuellner, Grants Coordinator [email protected] Term: 7/12/11 – 12/31/12 Program Description: In 100 Discoveries: The Nature of the Grand Prairie, four local Corps of Discovery groups trace the story and evolution of the Grand Prairie. In creating a temporary museum exhibit, featured through the end of this year in the Champaign County Forest Preserve’s Museum of the Grand Prairie, these citizen‐scientist‐artists from around the state of Illinois offer their creative interpretation of the local landscape and how it has been shaped by forces both natural and man‐made. Visitors to the exhibit can experience the landscape in winter, trace the flight of the dragonfly, gain an understanding of the birds and mammals native to the prairie, and learn the importance of preserving the rich natural resources of central Illinois’ rivers and wildlife habitats. Now housed in the Museum of the Grand Prairie (formerly the Early American Museum) in Champaign County’s Lake of the Woods preserve, the exhibit will be traveling to the Rock Springs Nature Center in Decatur in January 2013, and to the Illinois Natural History Survey at the University of Illinois sometime in the future. Since the exhibit opened on March 1 in the Museum of the Grand Prairie, it has been the backdrop for several educational programs conducted by the Forest Preserve’s cultural and environmental education staff. Educational Objectives and Outcomes: The exhibit has a variety of educational goals. Because of the diversity of the various interpretive panels and displays, each visitor is likely to come away with a different impression. The poems and drawings may appeal to the sensibilities of some visitors, while the photography and interactive displays may reach others more deeply. In general, the Corps of Discovery members had the following goals in mind:

Through a variety of artistic media, expand the viewers' perspective of the intricacies and diversity of nature, particularly the landscape of the Grand Prairie region in which we live

Introduce the public to the Corps of Discovery, a group founded by individuals at the IL Natural History Survey to encourage people to interpret and document the changing landscape through artistic expression

Create a unique and meaningful exhibit that will serve as a foundation for cultural and educational programming developed by the Forest Preserve District’s education staff




After viewing 100 Discoveries of nature, encourage the exhibit visitor to go out and make his own discovery in the natural world and develop his own approach to interpret and chronicle its meaning and beauty

Develop a museum exhibit to fill approximately 900 sq. ft., capable of being transported and reassembled in part or in its entirety in other museums, nature centers, or educational venues

Results for the District: The 100 Discoveries exhibit was completed successfully and in accordance with its planned timeline. The exhibit opened to the public on March 1, 2012 and will run in the Museum of the Grand Prairie through the end of December. The exhibit features wonderful examples of nature photography, sketches and paintings, poetry, and interactive displays. Interpretive panels cover each of the four walls in the Redhed Room (the gallery in which the museum’s temporary exhibits are featured), while the larger display cases and interactives are set up in the center and along the perimeter of the room. Folding panels filled with photography and art, including several that feature children’s work, greet visitors as they enter the exhibit. One display case provides information about the Corps of Discovery’s mission and encourages the public to make its own nature discoveries. Reaction to the exhibit has been overwhelmingly positive. It was skillfully and artistically designed, constructed, and displayed within the museum. More than 7,100 individuals have visited the museum and the exhibit so far this year, with the total number for 2012 projected at about 8,000. Many individuals have commented specifically about 100 Discoveries ‐ how much they enjoyed it and how much they learned from it. Several individuals remarked about the beauty of the local landscape and that we who reside here often don’t realize how much natural splendor there is to see and experience right around us. These three comments, typical of the remarks we have heard, were pulled from the visitor sign‐in book:

“Nice to learn more about my nature friends through their poetry and prose.”

“This (exhibit) borders on magic for the imagination.”

“I really like that the people who contributed to the exhibit and the places featured in it are all from around here.”

Summary: To summarize, the 100 Discoveries exhibit has been a tremendously successful endeavor for the Corps of Discovery members who participated, the Champaign County Forest Preserve, and the Museum of the Grand Prairie. The educational objectives have been met, as evidenced by the comments provided by the visitors to the exhibit. Perhaps our most important goal in particular has been met, in that the exhibit seems to be encouraging visitors to further explore the District preserves and the other natural areas right here in Champaign County.




Attachments:

Newspaper and printed articles regarding the 100 Discoveries exhibit

Photo images of the exhibit and IDNR recognition signage

NEWS Middle Fork River Forest Preserve • Homer Lake Forest Preserve • Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve

River Bend Forest Preserve • Sangamon River Forest Preserve

Champaign County Forest Preserve District PO Box 1040 • Mahomet, IL 61853

E-Mail: [email protected] Website: www.ccfpd.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Lisa Sprinkle March 8, 2012 217-586-3360

Museum of the Grand Prairie Opens with 100 Discoveries Exhibit The Museum of the Grand Prairie is now open for the 2012 season. We are excited to announce this year’s temporary exhibit, 100 Discoveries: The Nature of the Grand Prairie, experience today’s Grand Prairie in Central Illinois through artist interpretations using paper, pencil and cameras. Join us on Saturday. March 17, 2012 at 2:00 pm for an entertaining multimedia presentation featuring the natural and cultural beauty of Illinois interpreted through artistic expression by members of the Corps of Discovery. Come explore what they discovered about our Grand Prairie Region, and learn how you can make your own discoveries in cultural and natural history.

This presentation will kick-off the grand opening of the 100 Discoveries temporary exhibit at the Museum of the Grand Prairie. Free for everyone. For directions to the museum visit www.museumofthegrandprairie.org Two centuries ago, Illinois served as the start for one of the greatest exploratory endeavors undertaken in North America—the Lewis and Clark Expedition. This expedition generated perhaps the most famous nature journals ever compiled during their two-year exploration of the American West. Today, a new Corps of Discovery has been developed by biologists from the Illinois Natural History Survey. Armed with pencil, paper, and camera, this new corps has set out to rediscover the Grand Prairie in central Illinois as it exists today.

The 100 Discoveries exhibit will run from March 1 to December 31, 2012 at the Museum of the Grand Prairie at the scenic Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve in Mahomet, Illinois. Admission is free. Content is appropriate for all ages.

This project was funded in part by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources from contributions to the Illinois Wildlife Preservation Fund, Decatur Audubon Society, Illinois Natural History Survey and the Champaign County Forest Preserve District.

The Museum of the Grand Prairie is a facility of the Champaign County Forest Preserve District and is located on Route 47, 1/2 mile north of I-74 at Mahomet. The CCFPD provides conservation, education and recreation for the citizens of Champaign County and manages more than 3,800 acres of open space located at Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve, Mahomet; River Bend Forest Preserve, Mahomet; Homer Lake Forest Preserve, Homer; Middle Fork River Forest Preserve, Penfield; and Sangamon River Forest Preserve, Fisher.

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Rankin Independent March 15, 2012

Mahomet Ci zen

March 21, 2012

100 Discoveries Museum of the Grand Prairie

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Donor sign recognizing the Illinois Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Preserva on

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